Gnanam Foundation is the philanthropic organisation established in 2010 by Allirajah Subaskaran, the Chairman and founder of Lycamobile, his mother Gnanambikai Allirajah and his wife Prema Subaskaran.

The Foundation seeks to empower vulnerable and displaced communities impacted by conflict and climate change to build self-sufficient and sustainable livelihoods through a focus on providing access to healthcare, education, training and housing. The foundation currently operates in Sri Lanka, India, Sudan, Tanzania, Romania, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Its work is focused on creating sustainable and self-sufficient communities and is centred on the proverb: “give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”.

The Foundation operates in a variety of countries globally. Its programmes focus on supporting individuals and communities displaced by conflict and climate change by providing access to healthcare, education and housing, often in collaboration with international charities, NGOs and local partners.

Gnanam Foundation has partnered with a range of international organisations, including Save the Children and the British Asian Trust, to fund projects across the world.

Gnanam Foundation’s previous projects include:

1. Construction of a library in Nigeria with the Damilola Taylor Trust

2. Construction of drinking wells in Sudan and rainwater harvesting systems in Tanzania, in partnership with Imperial College, London

3. Supporting the work of Save the Children during the Ebola crisis in West Africa and in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines

4. Supporting a Cambridge University project aimed at improving public health in Sri Lanka and providing education and support to Sri Lankan students

Gnanam Foundation has worked closely with the British Asian Trust since its inception to tackle widespread poverty and hardship in South Asia, donating since 2010. Together with Gnanam Foundation, the British Asian Trust has already supported over 350,000 people across South Asia, including an IT education programme for children from low income families in Chennai.

In 2012, Gnanam Foundation through British Asian Trust to commit a grant to support children, widows and the disabled in Sri Lanka. A portion of the grant went towards supporting over 750 children living in slums, providing vital education and training, including vocational, language and communications skills.